Suspension issues - very bumpy, feels like driving over rocks.

[KungFuBarbie]

I am losing my mind. I drive 100 miles RT to work, so I can tell when something isn't right with my 2003 Ion2. Over the last few months, it's gotten progressively worse. It doesn't really have a sound, but it is like I am always driving over rocks or really rough road. I can FEEL thumping, bumping under my feet (don't wear shoes) and sometimes feel it in the steering wheel. It's almost like as the axle turns over, it rises up and bumps something. Which might not be possible, but that is what it feels like.

So far I have gotten new struts and a new left front axle. They say the shocks and the sway bar are OK, that the right axle is ok. I keep up with the tires and oil changes. My brakes are less than a year old.

I have no idea what the problem is and apparently it's not something my mechanic is noticing.

Any ideas??

Thanks!

[ssicarman]

Possible front lower control arm rear bushings, sway bar to frame bushings, sway bar links.

[KungFuBarbie]

Thanks for the reply. Would those be hard to spot if you were perhaps a lazy mechanic who thinks a woman doesn't know when something is wrong with her car?

[johnk]

The thumping would be where your left foot rests? If so, I would suspect the LCA bushings are shot. There should be a gap (appx 3/16") at the bottom where the lower control arm is bolted to the body. No gap and the LCA bushings are gone. Sway bar bushings are a bit harder to tell. You may see a gap between the bottom / top of the bar and the bushing, or you may just get clunking. Sway bar links, I just replaced when I did the struts since I had to cut them off, however they were not that expensive. Also there is a strut cap bushing that may be worn as well. I attempted to reuse my originals and it sounded like I had a tin can full of marbles strapped to the front end as I drove down the road. I ended up replacing the struts (leaking), strut cap bushings, LCA bushings, sway bar links and sway bar bushings before my clunking stopped. All the parts including the struts cost around 400.00. If you just do bushings, you're looking at probably 60.00 for parts plus labor.

[KungFuBarbie]

Thank you John. I am beginning to wonder if I have two separate issues. Today the feeling was worse than ever and now it began to affect the brakes. When I came to a complete stop in traffic, the car rocks back and forth twice. So I'm thinking the shocks definitely and maybe the bushings too. Ughhh.

[saturnions]

,and your sure part of the problem isn't tires.

[johnk]

Not sure how the tires would cause the car to rock when sitting at a stop. I could see them adding vibration if cupped or worn badly. I'll stick with worn / leaking struts

Prior to doing my front end work, the car tended to wander and was starting to rock and roll a bit as I drove down the road. It was difficult to keep it in the lane at times. Tires for me had about 25K and were in decent shape. Once I started to look in to the front end, I found the strut leaking, and the LCA bushing shot. Upon taking the strut apart, the strut bushing up top was shot, which I reused until the new ones came in. (nothing like pulling struts twice in a week) I had to cut off the sway bar links since I couldn't break free the bolt up by the strut. After all this was changed, I still had a clunking and the only thing left was the sway bar bushings. There are different sized bushings for the sway bar. They will be able to tell what you need based on the VIN. You should be able to get strut assemblies for the ION. This will minimize the labor on rebuilding the struts. They will cost a bit more, but you should get some of that back in labor savings.

All in all since I didn't have all the parts on hand, it took me about 2 weeks to complete the task.

The rear shocks in the ION are a breeze to change in comparison. They may need to apply some heat to break the lower bolt free, but other than that, It was maybe an hour to change both rear shocks.

If it was me and knowing what I know now, I would have the other parts on hand before starting the job. You can always return them if not needed. Finally once you get everything done, get an alignment done.